Wednesday, April 23, 2014

4-23-14 Movie News

        Hello ladies and gentlemen, here is some movie news with some of my thoughts and opinions (which will be in BOLD print). So without further ado...

(NOTE: All of these stories come from comingsoon.net)



        Walt Disney Pictures' upcoming take on The Jungle Book appears set to add the voices of two more stars. The Hollywood Reporter brings word that director Jon Favreau is targeting both Scarlett Johansson and Lupita Nyong’o for his Rudyard Kipling adaptation.The original book was published in 1894 and includes, among a number of other animal-themed stories, the classic tales of an Indian boy named Mowgli, who is raised by wolves and lives among the other animals in the jungle. Disney previously released an animated version of the film in 1967 and another live-action film in 1994. The latest take features a screenplay by Justin Marks.

        Johansson, who worked with Favreau on both Iron Man 2 and the upcoming Chef, would voice Kaa, the python, with Nyong’o providing the voice of Mowgli's adopted wolf mother, Rakcha. They join Idris Elba, who is voicing Shere Khan.With Kipling's book well into the public domain, Warner Bros. has been developing their own live action version of the book with Harry Potter scribe Steve Kloves providing the screenplay and Andy Serkis directing.The Jungle Book is set for release on October 9, 2015.

        I really like hearing this news. Now some people will complain that there isn't a need for two films about the same story should come out and that one is enough. Well I'd like to call bull on that. I think two films should be made simply because we can get two different versions and two different sides of the story and I really like that. Plus a film with Academy award winning actress Lupita Nyong'o , Scarlett Johansson and Idris Elba can't be bad.



        Principal photography has commenced on Goosebumps, starring Jack Black. Rob Letterman directs the film from a screenplay by Darren Lemke and Mike White and a story by Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski and Darren Lemke, based on the "Goosebumps" book series published by Scholastic and written by R. L. Stine. The producers are Neal H. Moritz and Deborah Forte. Executive producers are Bill Bannerman and Tania Landau. The film will be released on March 23, 2016.Also starring in Goosebumps are Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Amy Ryan, Jillian Bell, Ryan Lee, and Ken Marino.

        In Goosebumps, upset about moving from a big city to a small town, teenager Zach Cooper (Dylan Minnette) finds a silver lining when he meets the beautiful girl, Hannah (Odeya Rush), living right next door. But every silver lining has a cloud, and Zach's comes when he learns that Hannah has a mysterious dad who is revealed to be R. L. Stine (Jack Black), the author of the bestselling Goosebumps series. It turns out that there is a reason why Stine is so strange… he is a prisoner of his own imagination – the monsters that his books made famous are real, and Stine protects his readers by keeping them locked up in their books. When Zach unintentionally unleashes the monsters from their manuscripts and they begin to terrorize the town, it's suddenly up to Stine, Zach, and Hannah to get all of them back in the books where they belong.

        This concept sounds both hilarious and creepy at the same time. I'm a huge fan of R.L. Stine and his Goosebumps books and I'm glad to see this story come to life. I love that Jack Black is playing R.L. Stine and I think he'll bring some great comedy to the role and story. 



        Following last month's Red Band trailer for the upcoming comedy Sex Tape, Columbia Pictures has brought online a Green Band version. Check it out in the player below!

        When Jay (Jason Segel) and Annie (Cameron Diaz) first got together, their romantic connection was intense – but ten years and two kids later, the flame of their love needs a spark. To kick things up a notch, they decide – why not? – to make a video of themselves trying out every position in The Joy of Sex in one marathon three-hour session. It seems like a great idea – until they discover that their most private video is no longer private. With their reputations on the line, they know they're just one click away from being laid bare to the world... but as their race to reclaim their video leads to a night they'll never forget, they'll find that their video will expose even more than they bargained for.

        Directed by Jake Kasdan, Sex Tape also star Rob Corddry, Ellie Kemper and Rob Lowe. It hits theaters on July 25.



      This film looks hilarious. I love that Cameron Diaz and Jason Segal are re-teaming with their director from Bad Teacher. At first I was very skeptical about this film, but after seeing both the red band and now the green band trailer I couldn't be more excited for this movie.



        Walt Disney Pictures released two movies based on its theme park attractions in 2003; one of them, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, was an immense hit that gave rise to a billion-dollar franchise, while the other, The Haunted Mansion, was far less successful – critically and financially – but still grossed a tidy sum at the box office (over $180 million worldwide).

        The Mouse House has since attempted multiple times to bring another of its popular theme park rides to the big screen, with It’s a Small World being the latest subject. Disney’s musical boat ride – accompanied by the famous Sherman Brothers’ tune that’s either charmingly or irritatingly catchy (depending on who you ask) – takes guests on a tour around the world and explores many a different culture. While It’s a Small World didn't open in Disneyland until 1966, the ride originated at the 1964 New York World’s Fair (making this year its 50th anniversary).

        Deadline is reporting that the It’s a Small World movie script will be written by Jared Stern (based on his pitch), who also provided “additional story material” for the Disney animated features Bolt, The Princess and the Frog, and Wreck-It Ralph, and is a co-writer on the upcoming LEGO Movie sequel. Stern will produce the film along with LEGO Movie producer Dan Lin and Jon Turteltaub (Last Vegas), with the latter having also been recruited to serve as the movie’s director.

        I don't know how I really feel about this movie. This seems like it's is a terrible concept and a really bad idea. But when it comes to Disney you can never really can't count them out (even if they make movies like The Lone Ranger). 



        The Jurassic Park movie franchise returns with a new installment, Jurassic World, in 2015, featuring Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed) in his sophomore turn as a feature director. However, it doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to deduce that Universal is also resurrecting the sci-fi/horror property in the hopes that Jurassic World will be successful enough at the box office to warrant additional sequels.Trevorrow was interviewed about Jurassic World by Empire Magazine for the latter’s upcoming 300th issue; during the course of that conversation, the topic discussion eventually turned to future Jurassic Park installments.

        The filmmaker voiced his interested in coming back for said followups - “if they’ll have me” – assuming they come to pass, but perhaps more interestingly he discussed how he envisions something a little more creatively-satisfying than just more human vs. dino adventures that are only tangentially related: “We [Universal and I] definitely talked about [sequels] a lot. We wanted to create something that would be a little bit less arbitrary and episodic, and something that could potentially arc into a series that would feel like a complete story.”



        I really like hearing this news. When a studio is already planning future sequels it means that they have faith the film. I honestly hope we do get to see more Jurassic Park films because I love the franchise (eventhough a lot of people despise the third film).


        So there you have it ladies and gentlemen, which of these stories peaked your interest or was there another story that interested you? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.


                                                                                                                                         Jonah Sparks

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